Tafsir al-Baghawi - Al-Baghawi - (8/10)

Tafsir al-BaghawiAl-Baghawi

“Immortal youths will wait upon them (17) with goblets, pitchers, and a cup of flowing wine (18), from which they will suffer neither headache nor intoxication (19), with such fruit as they may choose (20), and the meat of fowl that they desire (21), and fair women with wide, beautiful eyes (22).”

“Immortal youths will wait upon them” in service—“youths”: boys (1)—“immortal”: they neither die, grow old, nor undergo any change. Al-Farra said: The Arabs say of one who has grown old without turning gray, “He is immortal.” (2)

Ibn Kaysan said: This means youths who are not transferred from one state to another.

Said ibn Jubayr said: They will wear earrings. One says, “He adorned his girl with khuld,” meaning earrings. (3)

Al-Hasan said: They are the children of the people of this world who had neither good deeds for which they might be rewarded nor evil deeds for which they might be punished. Since there is no childbirth in Paradise, they are the servants of the people of Paradise. (4)

“With goblets and pitchers”: goblets are the plural of a drinking cup; they are cups with broad, rounded mouths, having neither handles nor ears. Pitchers are vessels with spouts; they are called pitchers because of the brilliance of their color and clarity.

“And a cup of flowing wine”: that is, flowing wine. “From which they will suffer neither headache”: their heads will not ache from drinking it. “Nor will they be intoxicated”: that is, they will not become drunk. This is according to the reading with the letter zay pronounced with a fatḥah; according to the reading with a kasrah, it means that their drink will not be exhausted. (5)

“And such fruit as they may choose”: they choose whatever they desire. One says, “I chose the thing,” when one takes the best of it.

“And the meat of fowl that they desire”: Ibn Abbas said: The meat of a bird merely comes to a person’s mind, whereupon it appears before him in the form he desires. It is also said that it alights upon a man’s platter, and he eats from it whatever he wishes; then it flies away.

“And fair women with wide, beautiful eyes”: Abu Jafar, Hamzah, and al-Kisai recited it with the final letters in the genitive case, meaning, “and with fair women of wide, beautiful eyes.” They made it grammatically parallel to “with goblets and pitchers,” “fruit,” and “the meat of fowl,” even though their meanings differ, since the fair women are not carried around, just as the poet said:

“When lovely women emerge one day,
and arch their brows and adorn their eyes.” (6)

(1) Omitted from manuscript “A.” (2) Ma'ani al-Quran by al-Farra', 3:122, where it reads: “The Arabs say of a man who grows old without turning gray: he is mukhallad (ever-youthful).” (3) See al-Bahr al-Muhit, 8:205; al-Qurtubi, 17:202. (4) See al-Qurtubi, 17:203. (5) If la yanzafun is read with a fathah on the zay, it means: “They will not become intoxicated”; this is the reading adopted by al-Baghawi. Otherwise, when read with a kasrah, it means: “Their drink will not be exhausted.” (6) This verse is by al-Ra'i al-Numayri. See Ma'ani al-Quran by al-Farra', 3:123.

﴿يَطُوفُ عَلَيْهِمْ وِلْدَانٌ مُخَلَّدُونَ (١٧) بِأَكْوَابٍ وَأَبَارِيقَ وَكَأْسٍ مِنْ مَعِينٍ (١٨) لَا يُصَدَّعُونَ عَنْهَا وَلَا يُنْزِفُونَ (١٩) وَفَاكِهَةٍ مِمَّا يَتَخَيَّرُونَ (٢٠) وَلَحْمِ طَيْرٍ مِمَّا يَشْتَهُونَ (٢١) وَحُورٌ عِينٌ (٢٢) ﴾ ﴿يَطُوفُ عَلَيْهِمْ﴾ لِلْخِدْمَةِ ﴿وِلْدَانٌ﴾ [غِلْمَانٌ] (١) ﴿مُخَلَّدُونَ﴾ لَا يَمُوتُونَ وَلَا يَهْرَمُونَ وَلَا يَتَغَيَّرُونَ. وَقَالَ الْفَرَّاءُ: [تَقُولُ الْعَرَبُ لِمَنْ كَبِرَ وَلَمْ يَشْمَطْ: إِنَّهُ مُخَلَّدٌ] (٢) . قَالَ ابْنُ كَيْسَانَ: يَعْنِي وِلْدَانًا لَا يُحَوَّلُونَ مِنْ حَالَةٍ إِلَى حَالَةٍ. قَالَ سَعِيدُ بْنُ جُبَيْرٍ: مُقَرَّطُونَ، يُقَالُ: خَلَّدَ جَارِيَتَهُ إِذَا حَلَّاهَا بِالْخِلْدِ، وَهُوَ الْقِرْطُ (٣) . قَالَ الْحَسَنُ: هُمْ أَوْلَادُ أَهْلِ الدُّنْيَا لَمْ تَكُنْ لَهُمْ حَسَنَاتٌ فَيُثَابُوا عَلَيْهَا وَلَا سَيِّئَاتٌ فَيُعَاقَبُوا عَلَيْهَا لِأَنَّ الْجَنَّةَ لَا وِلَادَةَ فِيهَا فَهُمْ خُدَّامُ أَهْلِ الْجَنَّةِ (٤) . ﴿بِأَكْوَابٍ وَأَبَارِيقَ﴾ فَالْأَكْوَابُ: جَمْعُ كُوبٍ، وَهِيَ الْأَقْدَاحُ الْمُسْتَدِيرَةُ الْأَفْوَاهِ، لَا آذَانَ لَهَا وَلَا عُرًى، وَالْأَبَارِيقُ وَهِيَ: ذَوَاتُ الْخَرَاطِيمِ، سُمِّيَتْ أَبَارِيقَ لِبَرِيقِ لَوْنِهَا مِنَ الصَّفَاءِ. ﴿وَكَأْسٍ مِنْ مَعِينٍ﴾ خَمْرٍ جَارِيَةٍ. ﴿لَا يُصَدَّعُونَ عَنْهَا﴾ لَا تَصَّدَّعُ رُءُوسُهُمْ مِنْ شُرْبِهَا ﴿وَلَا يُنْزِفُونَ﴾ أَيْ لَا يَسْكَرُونَ [هَذَا إِذَا قُرِئَ بِفَتْحِ الزَّايِ وَمَنْ كَسَرَ فَمَعْنَاهُ لَا يَنْفَدُ شَرَابُهُمْ] (٥) . ﴿وَفَاكِهَةٍ مِمَّا يَتَخَيَّرُونَ﴾ يَخْتَارُونَ مَا يَشْتَهُونَ يُقَالُ تَخَيَّرْتُ الشَّيْءَ إِذَا أَخَذْتُ خَيْرَهُ. ﴿وَلَحْمِ طَيْرٍ مِمَّا يَشْتَهُونَ﴾ قَالَ ابْنُ عَبَّاسٍ يَخْطُرُ عَلَى قَلْبِهِ لَحْمُ الطَّيْرِ فَيَصِيرُ مُمَثَّلًا بَيْنَ يَدَيْهِ عَلَى مَا اشْتَهَى وَيُقَالُ إِنَّهُ يَقَعُ عَلَى صَحْفَةِ الرَّجُلِ فَيَأْكُلُ مِنْهُ مَا يَشْتَهِي ثُمَّ يَطِيرُ فَيَذْهَبُ. ﴿وَحُورٌ عِينٌ﴾ قَرَأَ أَبُو جَعْفَرٍ، وَحَمْزَةُ وَالْكِسَائِيُّ: بِكَسْرِ الرَّاءِ وَالنُّونِ، أَيْ: وَبِحُورٍ عِينٍ، أَتْبَعَهُ قَوْلَهُ: "بِأَكْوَابٍ وَأَبَارِيقَ" وَفَاكِهَةٍ وَلَحْمِ طَيْرٍ" فِي الْإِعْرَابِ وَإِنِ اخْتَلَفَا فِي الْمَعْنَى لِأَنَّ الْحُورَ لَا يُطَافُ بِهِنَّ، كَقَوْلِ الشَّاعِرِ: إِذَا مَا الْغَانِيَاتُ بَرَزْنَ يَوْمًا ... وَزَجَّجْنَ الْحَوَاجِبَ وَالْعُيُونَا (٦)

(١) ساقط من "أ". (٢) معاني القرآن للفرأ: ٣ / ١٢٢ وفيه: " والعرب تقول للرجل إذا كبر ولم يشمط: إنه لمخلد". (٣) انظر: البحر المحيط: ٨ / ٢٠٥، القرطبي: ١٧ / ٢٠٢. (٤) انظر: القرطبي: ١٧ / ٢٠٣. (٥) إذا قرأت (لا ينزفون) بفتح الزاي فمعناها: لا يسكرون، وهي القراءة التي قرأ بها البغوي. وإلا فمعناها - بالكسر - لا ينفذ شرابهم. (٦) البيت للراعي النميري، انظر: معاني القرآن للفراء: ٣ / ١٢٣.